Free Reluctant Storm by P.A. Warren Page A

pity, you could have been groomed for so much. Instead, they left you useless, bad for you, good for me. Now lick your lips.”
    Refusing, I curl myself into as much of a ball as I can to make myself as small as I can.
    Without warning, I’m lifted up as far as my chains will allow and pressed against the wall again. Riley presses his body into mine and crushes his blood -soaked lips to mine. I try to fight him off; pushing against his shoulders, but he doesn’t budge. When I feel a wave of something tingle through me, somehow I know everything is going to be okay. The pressure of his lips against mine is intense. It feels surprisingly normal and not torturous like I was expecting, which is really conflicting with how he has been acting. My mind doesn’t know how to deal about this. My brain says run away, and my body says stay for more. His lips are soft and warm against mine, his tongue presses against the seam of my lips, and I open my mouth, letting him in. He has such a sweet flavor to him that I don’t hesitate to pull his tongue into my mouth and suck, forgetting there’s blood on it. I feel myself getting extremely turned on by the taste of blood and the way his mouth is moving against mine. I feel his hard body pressed against mine and it’s telling me that he feels the effects of the kiss as well. He suddenly pulls back with a surprised look on his face and then puts his forehead against mine.
    “What just happened?” he whispers to himself, looking down at me. “Have you used one of your spells on me?”
    Hanging my head in shame, I look anywhere but at him. I’m embarrassed that I would ever do something like this and the feeling of shame washing over me is great. His words finally soak in and I glance up at him. Did he just say spells? “Spells, what are you talking about?” I ask, stunned and shaking my head at him. “Spells aren’t real. They’re something you read in a book, or watch on TV, not in real life.”
    His gaze is intense and shakes his head, running his hand through his already tousled hair. “No, when I kissed you I felt something, didn’t you?” He instantly grabs my shirt and lifts it up.
    Aghast, I cringe as cool air hits my chest, and I watch closely at an area right above my bra cup. I glance at him and notice his face has gone white as he stares at my chest. I watch him swallow deeply and lift his hand to the spot he is staring at. I look down again and notice a small black symbol about the size of a half dollar. It appears to be a name in cursive with a small symbol next to it, something that wasn’t there five minutes ago. Frozen, I’m left chained to the wall, staring at the name above my left breast in shock and with more questions than answers.
    “Shit…fuck!” he yells angrily, throwing the chair across the room and making me jump. .
    He approaches me again and looks at me in shock as he pulls my shirt down and whispers into my ear, “Don’t tell anyone, and I mean anyone, what just happened.” Staring at his eyes as they go fully black, I watch helplessly as he stalks out of the room, slamming the door with a boom.
    Left in the overwhelming silence, all I hear are my gasps and the loud wheezing sound coming from my throat as I stare at the dead girl still lying on the floor and drained of all of her blood. I feel what little I’ve eaten present itself again and barely make it in time to throw up in the bucket that was left on the floor. My head’s spinning with everything that’s happened. It’s just too much for me to take in, and I let my body slide down the wall, staring blankly at my bloody and bruised legs. How did Riley’s name get on my chest, and what exactly does this mean? Lifting my head, I notice blood on the sheets from the dead girl. It’s then that I feel something tearing out of my gums with such force I can’t help but scream, and once I start screaming I can’t stop.

Chapter 14
Riley

    I slam the door to the cell and order the guards